Happy 4th of July, everyone! Hope everyone has a wonderful day with their families and friends. My husband and I decided to do a 4th of July thing with just us this year. We’re going to be eating hot dogs with all sorts of toppings, and probably watch a movie and light some sparklers later in the evening. I was going to host a party, but we just couldn’t get our families together this year. I’m thinking we’ll have something for the football opener instead. Hopefully, I won’t be screaming at the TV too much, like our last party. Lesson learned. NEVER host a party when LSU is playing Bama. You’ll scare toddlers. (oops…)
Last week, I was totally in the mood to bake up some cookies. I’m sure my husband laughs at the fact that I have to keep a stockpile of at least 10 bags of chocolate chips in the pantry, so it just made sense to make some classic cookies. I usually make the thick and chewy recipe, but decided to try another Cook’s Illustrated recipe, called the Ultimate Chocolate Chip cookies. The big difference between these cookies and their thick and chewy cookies is the use of browned butter. By the way, I firmly believe that Bath and Body Works needs to make a candle scent called browned butter. The smell of butter browning…mmm! Please tell me I’m not the only one…
These cookies had a strong butterscotch-y flavor to them, and came out pretty darn thick with a slightly crunchy exterior and a chewy interior. They pretty much disappeared at my husband and I’s offices before 10am. Who says you can’t have cookies for breakfast? LOL!
Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies
Source: Cook’s Illustrated CookbookIngredients:
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 14 tbsp. unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 large egg + 1 large egg yolk
- 1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips or chunks
Directions:
- Move the oven rack to the middle position in the oven, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare two cookie sheets by lining them with parchment paper or silicone mats and set aside.
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the flour and baking soda. Set aside.
- Place 10 tbsp. of the butter in a 10 inch stainless steel skillet (stainless steel makes it easier to watch when the butter starts to turn colors) over medium-high heat. Cook the butter, swirling the pan constantly, until the butter turns a dark golden brown and has a nutty aroma (about 1-3 minutes). Immediately transfer the browned butter to a large, heatproof bowl, and then add the remaining 4 tbsp. of butter to the same bowl, stirring until the butter has melted.
- Add the brown sugar, granulated sugar, salt and vanilla extract to the bowl with the butter in it, and whisk until well incorporated. Add the egg and egg yolk, and whisk until the mixture is completely smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, for about 30 seconds. Allow the mixture to sit for 3 minutes, and whisk the mixture again for 30 seconds. Repeat the resting and whisking two more times, until your mixture is thick, smooth and shiny.
- Stir in the flour mixture to the wet mixture for about a minute, using a rubber spatula. Stir in the chocolate chips, and stir the dough one last time to make sure that there is no flour showing through in the dough.
- Scoop out the cookies in 3 tbsp. measurements (these will be large cookies), and roll the 3 tbsp. of dough into a ball. Place the dough balls 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake the cookies 1 sheet at a time, rotating the pan halfway through the baking process, until the cookies start to turn golden brown, yet are still puffy, about 10-14 minutes. The edges will look done, but the centers will still look soft. (That’s OK, since they’ll bake a little more on the cookie sheet when you take them out of the oven.) Place the cookie sheet on a wire cooling rack, and allow the cookies to fully cool to room temperature on the cookie sheet.
